Vaisheshika

Vaisheshika is derived from the Sanskrit, vishesa, meaning “distinction”
or “distinguishing feature.” It is one of the six darshans,
or ways of viewing the world, according to Hindu philosophy. The other five darshans of
Hindu philosophy are yoga, samkhya, nyaya, mimamsa and vedanta.

What distinguishes Vaisheshika from the
other Hindu schools of philosophy is its emphasis on metaphysics and
naturalism. It is most similar to the Nyaya (logic) school - so much
so that the two schools of thought are often studied together as the
Nyaya-Vaisheshika school.

Yogapedia explains Vaisheshika

Vaisheshika believes in perception and
inference as the two reliable means to knowledge, while nyaya
followers believe in four sources of knowledge: perception,
inference, verbal testimony and comparison.

Vaisheshika classifies life into seven
padarthas (categories of being) and contends that all
physical objects are made up of atoms, which this school of
thought postulates are the smallest entity in the physical world. The
seven padarthas are:

Dravya – substance, of which
there are nine: earth, water, fire, air, ether, time, space, spirit
and mind